nim6 gau6念舊念旧
Jyutpingnim6 gau6
Yalenihm gauh
Definition
Cherishing old friendships and remembering the old days; nostalgic or loyal to past relationships.
colloquialpeopleemotion
How it's used
Describes someone who deeply values past experiences, relationships, or even physical objects. It carries a warm, positive connotation of loyalty and emotional depth rather than just being stuck in the past. People often use it to explain why someone keeps old items or stays in touch with childhood friends long after moving on.
Examples
He is very sentimental and always misses his old friends.
Related words
Common phrases
to have a nostalgic personality
to be a person who values old ties
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with simply having a good memory. While it implies remembering, the core of the word is the emotional attachment and the reluctance to let go of the past.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
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Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
